A direct mount upgrade featuring a range of gear options

1×11 may be the one the best game changers to come around this decade but there has been a common request. “We want lower gears.” The smallest front ring for XX1 is 28 tooth and the for X0 and X1, it is only 30 tooth. 30t may work for most but folks with bigger wheels, heavier bikes, steeper mountains and more rider mass are often heard clamoring for lower gears.

The reason for the chainring minimum sizing limitations is the spider technology used to attach the chainring to the crank only had so much room to accomodate the carrier and the chainring bolts. So to address this, they’ve designed a new spiderless or ‘direct mount’ technology. Along the way, they’ve paid close attention to the reliability and stiffness of the system.

SRAM X-SYNC Official Press Release

Make SRAM 1x even better with the simplicity of the new SRAM X-SYNC Direct Mount chainring. Engineered in Germany, the new Direct Mount rings bring lighter weight and greater simplicity to XX1, X01 and X1-1400 cranksets. SRAM’s Direct Mount rings give riders the perfect opportunity for a serious upgrade.

Photo Thumbnails (click to enlarge)

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@ Izzy, It depends. Which brand and how many speed do you want? For brands, I’d personally recommend Sram, as they seem to have by far the most options, and a lot of third party manufacturers are making direct mount rings that fit them. I’ll assume that you’ll go with Sram for ease of recommendation.

If you’ve got or are switching to a 1×11 drivetrain, the cheapest option is the X1 1400 crank at about $230. If you are just looking to convert your 3×10 or 2×10 drivetrain into a wide range 1×10 (very common these days), the cheapest may be the X9 crankset at around $170. Either way, they are both fine cranks.

Sram uses a different spindle geometry, so they might not be compatible. At least RF used to do it differently. Can’t speak of the latest batch of cranks. It would be great if they did adopt the Sram spindle lug pattern.

I’m running a Wolftooth on my X9. I was hoping the SRAM options would be less expensive. The good thing about the X9 is that it comes in 180mm, although you have a unused spider with rings lying around.